Let us reflect on the brief existence of Pickle the fish. Born without the ability to swim, he was lovingly cared for by Tom and Debbie Nicholson (the filmmaker’s parents) who kept him propped up in a sponge to keep him from sinking to the bottom of the aquarium. This whimsical celebration of man’s eternal capacity to care for all creatures—an obese chicken, a cat with a heart condition, and a paraplegic possum among them—celebrates the all-too-brief lives of this offbeat menagerie. They will be dearly missed.

Director’s Statement: Amy Nicholson

I try to find a funny side to everything and tragedy is no exception. Pickle’s unrelenting march of death is intended to entertain, but hopefully between morbid curiosity and chuckling at the sheer volume of casualties, the audience will find a bit of themselves in this film.

Short Docs sponsored by Ashland Home Net/Project A (Jim Teece & Dena Matthews)

Oregon Premiere

Cleveland attempts to overcome its nickname, “ The Mistake by the Lake” by launching 1.5 million balloons. Original news footage from the 1986 event captures both the excitement of the event and its serious, unplanned consequences.

Director’s Statement: Nathan Truesdell

Sometimes, when you start a project, you can’t imagine the journey that awaits you. When I started Balloonfest, in 1986, I was only 7 years old. Like Cleveland, at the end of a long journey, we all got something we had never expected.

Short Docs sponsored by Ashland Home Net/Project A (Jim Teece & Dena Matthews)

US Premiere

AIFF alumni filmmakers Drea Cooper and Zackary Canepari (T-Rex-AIFF2015; The Bionic Man and The Dog-AIFF2016) tell the inspiring story of Daniel Kish, a blind man who has earned the moniker “the remarkable Batman” by navigating his world of darkness using sound, or echolocating, making clicking sounds in a conversation with his environment. Having taught himself to “see” with sound, he now teaches others to do the same.

Directors’ Statement: Zackary Canepari, Drea Cooper

Drea woke up one morning to a random email. It was from a person in France who had seen our California is a Place series. He read an article about Daniel Kish and thought we might be interested. We quickly read the story and couldn’t believe it. Could someone really teach himself how to echolocate like a bat? How is this even possible? We had to find out.

Short Docs sponsored by Ashland Home Net/Project A (Jim Teece & Dena Matthews)

Virtual Reality Hands-on Gallery and Docs

1-2pm & 4-5pm VR Gallery: Experience a sampling of innovative animations created expressly for VR. Available for viewing on HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, and Samsung Gear headsets and suitable for ages 12 and older.

3-4pm Docs on VR:
AIFF2017 filmmakers Drea Cooper and Zack Canepari (Kish) will answer questions and discuss the shooting of their VR doc, Policing Flint, and guide viewers through some of their favorite online VR doc experiences.

Don’t forget to bring your IOS or Android smartphones and earbuds/headphones so we can provide you with VR headsets and help you set up VR apps.

Oregon Premiere

As their 71st wedding anniversary approaches, Selina and Joseph Gonzales reflect on endurance, love, and fortitude after the years of living in Yscloskey, Louisiana a decade after Hurricane Katrina. Joseph, the boatman, navigates the onset of blindness, hoping to finish building the boat he started decades ago and put it in the water before the next hurricane arrives.

Director’s Statement: Zack Godshall

In The Boatman, I combine the themes of several of my previous films—life along Louisiana’s disappearing coastline, surviving floods and hurricanes, and building big things—in this case a house and a 65-foot oyster boat. Given my familiarity with the main themes, I did my best to step back and allow Joseph and Selina Gonzales tell their own story of resilience and triumph.

Short Docs sponsored by Ashland Home Net/Project A (Jim Teece & Dena Matthews)

Oregon Premiere

Jad Abumrad, host of the popular NPR program RadioLab, sits down with director Mac Premo to discuss what sound and music are and what function music plays in our lives. Abumrad’s surprising and humorous insights are punctuated by Premo’s mix of collage, live action film, and stop-motion animation.

Director’s Statement: Mac Premo

There’s a shitload I don’t know. This is the first in what I hope will become a series of films where I speak to people who are smarter than me about things that they are smarter than me about. And then I turn that conversation into a film.

Short Docs sponsored by Ashland Home Net/Project A (Jim Teece & Dena Matthews)

Oregon Premiere

A reflection on art as a way of life, The Man is the Music draws us into the imaginative and captivating world of artist and musician Lonnie Holley. Raised in Jim Crow Alabama, he finds beauty in the discarded objects he discovers on roadsides and in accumulations of what other people might call trash, creating a unique perspective on what it means to be socially discarded.

Director’s Statement: Maris Curran

Holley’s work is a means of connection, a way to deal with loss, and a means to survive. He compulsively creates— often without editing. As an artist and the daughter of an artist, I understand that it is in the process where the magic happens.

Short Docs sponsored by Ashland Home Net/Project A (Jim Teece & Dena Matthews)

World Premiere

A pair of outdoor ping pong tables draws players from disparate groups to a park in the heart of New York City. From the homeless to investment bankers to gang members—they all come for the love of the game. Playing through wind, dust, or rain, powerful and surprising connections are made and a heartwarming community is formed.

Director’s Statement: Jon Bunning

When I discovered the tables, I was immediately drawn to the diverse group of characters who played there, but I connected with one person in particular, an older African American gentlemen who unbeknownst to me at the time was in fact homeless. He had such a captivating personality and was instrumental in helping me make the film.​

Short Docs sponsored by Ashland Home Net/Project A (Jim Teece & Dena Matthews)